Understand 301 redirects

A 301 is a redirect, not an error. The server answers a request by pointing the client to a different URL. Browsers, crawlers, and API clients follow that new location automatically.

# When 301 redirects happen

• Forcing https:// instead of http://
• Routing a test domain to the primary custom domain
• Moving content to a new path after a relaunch
• Normalizing the www. and the bare domain to a single host

# Browser caching

This is the one thing to know about 301: browsers cache it hard, often permanently. Once a browser has seen a 301 for an URL, it may stop asking the server about the original address at all and jump straight to the target.

That makes a 301 hard to take back. A wrong rule can stick in visitors' browsers for a long time, and there is no way to clear it remotely. Test redirect rules with curl -I or a private browser window before making them permanent.

$ curl -I https://example.frb.io
HTTP/2 301
location: https://www.your-domain.example/

When in doubt whether a redirect should be permanent, start with a 302 and switch to 301 once the new URL is confirmed stable.

# SEO considerations

Search engines read a 301 as the signal to move a page's ranking to the new URL. For a permanent move this is the correct code: it consolidates link equity onto the target and updates the index over time.

• Use 301, not 302, when content moves for good, so the ranking follows.
• Redirect to the final URL in a single hop — avoid redirect chains.
• Set a canonical URL as well, so search engines know which address is the single source.

# Domain redirects on fortrabbit

Domain redirects configured in the dashboard use a 301. When a domain is set to forward to another domain, requests are answered with a permanent 301 to the target. See domain forwarding.

# Set up a 301

Most custom 301 redirects on fortrabbit are written in .htaccess with mod_rewrite. See Redirects with .htaccess for force-https and domain redirect examples.